~The ringing in your ears~
A lost Revenge spoilers ahead!
Harry spent at least a day stuck in his own head while tied to a mastâŚwonder what that was like
Angst, hurt/comfortâŚmostly angst
Follows the plot of the book
Kinda ties into a past work of mine, but not required readingâjust a re-used scenario
You can pry the em-dash from my cold dead hands
â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-â˘-
The last thought Harry had that was his own was one of fear. Uma had given the crew wax to block out the Sea Witches songâŚand he lost it. The ship had been rocking every which way in the storm, and his piece got lost in the chaos. Now, he was standing face to face with his captain, ears ringing with the witches spell
âHear our voicesâŚspells aboundâŚcome to the waterâŚweâll pull you downâŚâ
No, no, no no noâŚ
His body wasnât his anymore. His legs pulled him toward the shipâs wheel and his hands gripped the handles for dear life.
âHarry! Stop!â
He could hear Umaâs voice, but it sounded so far away, like yelling through a wind tunnel. The spell grew more persistent, the ringing louder. Harry yanked the wheel hard to the leftâand got slammed in the shoulder. Uma was now standing next to him, having shoved him off the wheel
âGet her offâ
A new voice in his head commanded, it sounded so familiar. His shoulders tensed, readying for contact.
No, no not UmaâŚdonât make him hurt Uma, please
His body disobeyed him, slamming into his captain, and sending her toppling overboard. His hands snapped back onto the wheel, and made another sharp left. The Sea witches swarmed, the crew couldnât fight them off forever. He wanted to scream, cry out for helpâŚbut his lips wouldnât let him, and his hands kept steering.
The ship was starting to sink when another started sailing their way, a gang of pirates jumping onto the deck. His hands released the wheel, and went for his sword as a blonde girl in a red coat appeared next him
CJ
Their blades locked, Harryâs arms straining against his will to push down on his little sister. It was a miracle she could hold her own against him. Harry was tall enough to use her as an arm rest and had far more muscle. But CJ Hook plays dirtier than most pirates, kicking her brother in the back of the knees andâ
*THUNK*
Harryâs head hit the deck hard, and the world went dark
~~~
His vision returned to the sight of a slowly rising sun, but it felt like he was seeing it through someone elseâs eyes. He felt hollow, like his heart had been ripped from his chest and replaced with cotton. His hands were pinned behind him and he was propped againstâŚa mast? Rope was digging into his wrists. A kid no older than ten bobbed into view, their voice a million miles away
âItâs just for a little awhile, Captain said soâ
Their smile was missing a front tooth. The ringing returned in Harryâs ears. A strangled sound escaped his throat, though he wasnât sure what it was supposed to be. The kidâs brow creased, and they ran off as Harryâs vision doubled and blurred until he was somewhere else.
~~~
He was thirteen, back on the Isle of the Lost, the grey waters soaking his feet. Harriet was supposed to be back from her voyage by nowâŚbut itâd been a week, and people were starting to whisper. Harry clutched his lucky coin in his pocketâHarriet had given it to their father, but Harry had claimed it for himself when Hook claimed to have not remembered where it came from and let him have it. The water licked his ankles, and a single tear joined their ranks
âHarry?â
CJ tugged on his sleeveâshe was only eight. He pulled her into his side
âWhatâre you doing out here, kiddo?â
He asked her gently. Heâd been gentle with her a lot recently
âDaddyâs drunkâ
She mumbled. When was he not? He hasnât been sober since mum died, heâs been even worse the past two weeks. He sighed and took her hand
âForgetful drunk or thrashing drunk?â
CJ kicked the sand
âForgetfulâ
Harry squeezed her hand a little tighter, running a comforting hand through her hair
âOkâŚletâs give him some spaceâ
The waves went quiet. CJ said something, but Harry couldnât hear her, just the ring that bounced on the back of his skull. Harryâs vision doubled and blurred, and the world went black again.
~~~
He was still tied to the mast. Someone mustâve re-tied the rope, his wrists were free, but his chest and arms were restrained. It looked to be the afternoon, the ship still sailing in the same directionâNorth, maybe? He couldnât feel much, all of his limbs had fallen asleep, he just felt the sensation of breathing against the rope. Someone sat down next to him, but he couldnât turn to look.
âHeyâ
Uma? She was ok! He wouldâve smiled, apologized, maybe even try to kiss her, but his lips stayed sealed, and his eyes stayed staring blankly at the horizon. Umaâs hand gripped his shoulder, the sudden touch making the numb limb uncomfortably buzzy.
âThe ropes are for your own safetyâŚhopefully not for much longerâ
Harryâs mind was elsewhere. Where? He didnât know. The ringing in his ears was constant, though the pitch had lowered from discombobulating to distracting. He wasnât sure if Uma was still talking, or if she was still there. The rope was pushing his leather harness into his sternum, whoever tied him up clearly didnât want him to move, apparently for his own safety. The hollowness felt heavier, branching out from his heart to his brain, weighing down his skull. Uma was still there, her hand moving into his line of sight when his hair fell in his faceâŚwhat was that?
There was someone whispering in the back of his mind, not to himâŚbut they were in his headâŚthey sounded like Harriet.
~~~
He didnât know where he wasâŚbut Harry knew he felt like he was gonna die
His body was trembling and felt like it was on fire, his throat was raw and the taste of copper and bile lingered on his tongue. The air smelled like saltwater, but he was next to lamplight. He heard the creek of a door, and soft footsteps.
âŚHarriet. She looked no older than twelve, messy brown hair, too-long tunic and torn leggingsâŚand their motherâs red jacket.
Harry knew where he was now.
He was on the Jolly Roger, ten years oldâalmost eleven, the winter he almost went to join mum on the other side.
Harriet approached his bed with a guilty look in her eyes, her hand resting on his forehead. Her hands were so cold he wouldâve recoiled, but his body hurt to too much to move away.
âYouâre burning upâ
Harriet whispered, a fact that felt terribly obvious to him. Her eyes went to the glass of water on the nightstand and her frown grew even more somber. He hadnât been able to keep anything down for nearly two days.
âYouâre not allowed to dieâ
The statement wouldâve been funny if Harriet hadnât meant it so earnestly. Mum had died almost a year ago, she didnât want to lose him too. Harry couldnât speak, his throat too scratched and raw for words, instead it seized up and went into a coughing fit.
âSshh, itâs okâŚyouâre okâ
Harriet propped him up despite his bodyâs protest. He buried his face in her shoulder, tears stinging his eyes as his chest tightened and refused to loosen back up.
âJust breathe, kiddo, just breatheâ
Easier said than done, but he tried anyway. His vision blurred, Harrietâs voice fadedâŚ
~~~
He was numb againâŚcold
Harry didnât know where he was, nor did he care. He was still tied up, the ringing in his ears overwhelming. The sky was dark and starry, and he wasâŚfloating. A piece of wood bobbed past him
He was in waterâŚhowâd he end up there? The waves churned, and four ghoulish figures surrounded himâsea witches. They were closing in, and he was starting to sink
Just breathe, kiddo, just breathe
The water was past his chest, licking at his jaw. The water felt weird against his numb limbs, like their was a barrier around his skin keeping it from making contact. The water rose past his jaw, now lapping at his lips and nose, small drops sticking to his eyelashes. Two more minutes and heâd probably be dead. He sank further, eyes stuck open as the water passed them by, soaking the tips of his hairâŚ
Something wrapped around his waist, pulling him back to the surface and a melody filled his ears, pushing out the painful ringingâ
~~~
Harry blinked fast and hard. It felt like his soul had just been kicked back into his bodyâhard. He looked down at the tentacle around his waist, looked behind him and sawâ
âUma? Wh-what happened?â
His limbs felt like wet cement, his brain was still catching up with his soul, andâŚhowâd he end up in the ocean!?
Uma just smiled
âIâll explain later. Cover your earsâ
He quickly obliged and covered his ears as Uma swam them back to the Lost Revenge, Gil and Desiree waiting with a rope to hoist him back on board.
His first act back on deck was less than dignified. His legs were so numb heâd almost crashed into Gil, the other boy catching him in a tight bear hug
âDude, youâre ok!â
He cheered. Harry wouldâve laughed but Gil was crushing his lungs
âIâm ok!â
He managed to wheeze out before Desiree pat Gilâs shoulder
âLet him breatheâ
She laughed as Gil put him down. Luckily, the bear hug seemed to have brought all the blood back into Harryâs upper and lower extremities and he could actually feel his arms and legs again. The crew all turned as Uma hopped back on board, and somehow, Harry was the first to act.
He pulled her into a hug. He wanted to say something, but he didnât even know where to start. Uma hugged him back, but the fact that they were being watched clicked a second later and they both pulled away, blushing
âUhâŚgood to be back aboard, Captainâ
He stuttered. Uma looked at him fondly and smirked
âYou didnât think I was going to let my first mate get turned into fish food, did you?â
âI thought you were on your way to Davey Jonesâs lockerâ
Desiree was evidently saying what most of the crew was thinking. They all seemed a little jittery
âThat was a little too close for me. Letâs not do that again, okay?â
Another chimed in. Harry chuckled and turned to Uma
âWhat lifesaving debt will I owe you next?â
He nudged her shoulder, and Uma returned the gesture
âA basket of fish and chips when we get backâ
Harry let out a well earned sigh and looked out at the starry sky
âNowâŚcare to explain what trouble weâve sailed into?â
Hope you enjoyed! The art in the book kinda implies Harry was completely out of it while spelledâŚbut a man being tied to a mast while catatonic didnât sound as fun to write, so I took some creative liberties. He was basically a damsel in distress, I took the opportunity!
And yes, the ending dialogue is directly from the book, even in my little tumblr writings Iâm canon compliment to the letterâquite literally
